All Romanian Medical Universities offer postgraduate medical programmes for EU and non-EU medical graduates. Postgraduate medical study focuses on the acquisition of a medical specialty (or residency) and covers theoretical and practical training, according to the approved EU and national training curricular guidelines for the respective specialty. Depending on the specialty, training usually lasts 4-6 years and takes place at medical university affiliated hospitals and clinics exclusively offering postgraduate-level medical practice, under the guidance of a residency coordinator or the director of the university hospital. Upon completion of the residency specialization training program, students have to sit for a written and clinical practice exam, upon successful completion of which, the Ministry of Health issues a certificate of completion of the respective specialty. Most medical graduates of Romanian medical universities, whether Romanian, EU citizens or non-EU citizens, prefer to continue with their specialization in Romania, either due to the availability of funding (EU citizens) or the low cost of living in Romania or both.

Note that it is imperative by this time that all foreigners (EU and non EU candidates) should have at least some competency in the Romanian language or take a 9-month preparatory course culminating with a Romanian language exam (B2 level in the EU framework) usually at a University, so as to be able to communicate with patients they treat in hospitals, as is the case in any country that a medical professional seeks specialization whose native language is not the one spoken. Successful EU candidates have to register directly with the Ministry of Health Directorate, while non-EU candidates apply to the Ministry of Education, and subsequently the Ministry of Health approves their registration.

Every year, the Ministry of Health allocates a certain number of positions for EU candidates (including Romanians) and Non-EU candidates. It publishes all available specialty vacancies in Medical University affiliated Hospitals and clinics as early as late August-Early September, and candidates can apply by early November. Eligible candidates are only medical graduates who have completed their undergraduate studies in Medicine within the last 5 years or else they do not have the right to practise medicine in Romania. Generally speaking, EU candidates, including Romanians, are admitted to specialization positions through an application as well as a mandatory residency examination process and subsequently must secure funding, but non-EU candidates are admitted through an application process as they are self-funded.

Non-EU students apply for a residency specialization program by submitting all necessary documentation to the Ministry of Education, Research, Youth and Sports (MECI) and, in turn, it is the Ministry of Health that approves the specialty they have chosen to pursue. The fees that non-EU students pay range from 3,300-7,700 Euros a year.

EU and Romanian students are admitted to residency specialization programmes by participating at the end of November in a regional competition examination, organized by the Ministry of Health. Students need to submit their application documents to the directorate of the Public Health at the Ministry of Health. Sometimes, depending on position availability, the Ministry of Health may announce additional places for residency, thus organizing a second residency exam session within March. The regional competitions take place in only six medical universities: Iasi, Bucharest, Cluj-Napoca, Craiova, Targu Mures and Timisoara, and the results are published by the Ministry of Health. The local residency committees are responsible for organizing and conducting competitions including the exam material and correction. The exam material is taken from bibliography approved by the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports, and includes 200 multiple-choice questions as well as 50 questions requiring only one correct answer, and 150 questions requiring 2-4 correct answers, depending on variables and per-case criteria or diagnoses. The duration of the test is 4 hours and the minimum allowed passing score is 60%. After successfully passing the exam, and having begun their residency practice, candidates are entitled to receive a monthly salary ranging from 579 to 1,013 RON (approx. £97-170) payable by the Romanian Government.

Candidates' application files should contain the following documents to ensure eligibility for the regional specialty residence exams:

Application form, indicating the name of candidate as shown on ID card/passport, and father's name and initial(s)

Identity Card or Passport certified copy (pages that show the name of the candidate and date of birth)

Certified copy of the Medical Diploma/Degree

A5 medical certificate stating that the candidate is physically and mentally healthy to continue with his or her residency

Receipt of 300 RON (£55) fee for participating in the exam

Certified photocopy of relevant documents (marriage certificates, etc.) as a proof of name-change if the candidate's name has changed

EU or non-EU Students interested in receiving a second specialty in Romania will have to pay tuition fees after they submit their application documents, payable directly to the Ministry of Health in September for the first session, or in April for the second session.

Candidates' application files should contain the following documents to ensure eligibility for the second regional specialty residence:

Application form of license registration, indicating: full name, current employer and type of employment contract, current specialty, specialty for which registration is desired and contact number(s)

Current employer should indicate on the candidate's application for the second specialization the address of the Public Health Unit, the candidate's employment status, the specialty type, the university training centre, and the remuneration received for this period

Notice of registration issued by the Rector (or else the Dean) of the University Hospital's training programme

Photocopy of the certificate of the undergraduate physician diploma/Degree

Photocopy of the certificate that the candidates is registered at the respective medical professional organization

A5 Health medical certificate stating that the candidate is physically and mentally healthy to continue with his or her residency

Certified copy of identity card / passport

Photocopy of the relevant documents (marriage certificates etc) as proof of name-change, if the candidate's name has changed

Commitment fee declaration (lists the tuition fee instalments and the dates these have to be paid) for the training programme of the second residency as approved by the joint order of the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Education, Research, Youth and Sports.

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Will BREXIT affect my studies in Bulgaria or Romania?

As a result of the referendum held on June 23rd, Study Medicine Europe would like to announce:

According to the respective regulatory bodies in the UK (click here to visit the GMC, GDC and RCVS websites), all of our partner universities in Bulgaria and Romania continue to offer degrees recognized by the aforementioned councils.

As the UK tertiary educational system, including study programmes and qualifications, is aligned with that of member states of the EU, as well as of non EU countries such as Switzerland and Norway, a British withdrawal from the European Union would not have an impact on the value of the degrees obtained in these countries. As a result of past intergovernmental and bilateral treaties and conventions among states within and outside the European Union, which do not have the status of EU legislation, comparability in the educational standards and quality of higher qualifications has granted graduates from these countries recognition and equal work opportunities both within and beyond the EU borders.

In other words, graduates from Bulgaria and Romania do not take the PLAB test (for medical graduates) or the ORE test (for dental graduates) upon their return to the UK, not because the United Kingdom is a member of the EU, but simply because there are other agreements and treaties that ensure the quality of their studies and the value of their degrees and that do not come under EU legislation and conditions, such as the Bologna Treaty and the Treaty of Lisbon, among others.

Will BREXIT affect my studies in Bulgaria or Romania?

As a result of the referendum held on June 23rd, Study Medicine Europe would like to announce:

According to the respective regulatory bodies in the UK (click here to visit the GMC, GDC and RCVS websites), all of our partner universities in Bulgaria and Romania continue to offer degrees recognized by the aforementioned councils.

As the UK tertiary educational system, including study programmes and qualifications, is aligned with that of member states of the EU, as well as of non EU countries such as Switzerland and Norway, a British withdrawal from the European Union would not have an impact on the value of the degrees obtained in these countries. As a result of past intergovernmental and bilateral treaties and conventions among states within and outside the European Union, which do not have the status of EU legislation, comparability in the educational standards and quality of higher qualifications has granted graduates from these countries recognition and equal work opportunities both within and beyond the EU borders.

In other words, graduates from Bulgaria and Romania do not take the PLAB test (for medical graduates) or the ORE test (for dental graduates) upon their return to the UK, not because the United Kingdom is a member of the EU, but simply because there are other agreements and treaties that ensure the quality of their studies and the value of their degrees and that do not come under EU legislation and conditions, such as the Bologna Treaty and the Treaty of Lisbon, among others.